


barefoot thinking

by rhenna



Category: Naruto
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Drabble, Drinking, Drunkenness, F/M, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, Unhealthy Relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-06
Updated: 2019-02-06
Packaged: 2019-10-23 13:26:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 455
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17684339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rhenna/pseuds/rhenna
Summary: “Hm. It appears I lost my shoes somewhere.” Ino looked blankly, drunkenly, at her bare feet, wiggling her red-painted toes disdainfully. Well, didn’t that just put the icing on the cake?





	barefoot thinking

“Hm. It appears I lost my shoes somewhere.” Ino looked blankly, drunkenly, at her bare feet, wiggling her red-painted toes disdainfully. Well, didn’t that just put the icing on the cake? Shikamaru was mad at her, seemingly because she came home drunk ( _again_ ), so where could she go now? She couldn’t go home, not now anyways, because she knew when she did Shikamaru would be asleep on the front porch, waiting for her to come home and not wanting to go inside for fear that she’d come in and he’d miss it ( _because he cares, because he’s worried, because he–_ ).

Ino honestly hadn’t meant to get so drunk, but when you’re out at a bar with Kiba, you tended to throw caution to the wind and get totally sloshed. She supposed she’d left her shoes back at the bar then; she left right after Kiba started flirting with that man ( _Sasuke, not ‘that man’_ ). Right. Bad topic. She didn’t want to think about Sasuke right then, the little fuck was more trouble than he was worth. Yeah, that was it, she left after Kiba did-- did _that_ , and walked back to her apartment. Barefoot, it appeared. And met Shikamaru. Ouch, her head hurt.

And Ino didn’t want to think about the things she always managed to catch in Shikamaru’s eyes when he yelled at her with ‘the Look’ firmly planted on his face. And she didn’t want to think about why she felt like crying and apologizing to him, then dragging him back to bed and making him stay the night. Dragging him off the porch ( _he would be there, he would, because he always seemed to be waiting for her_ ), and snuggling down into his arms instead of into the embrace of some nameless guy she could find right then to do the same kind of thing ( _because that was just the safest place to be; her fears couldn’t get her there, not if she was with Shikamaru_ ).

So as she stood there, blinking down at perfectly manicured toenails, barefoot in a slightly-wrinkled red dress, she figured she’d go meet Shikamaru back at her place. After all, he’d be waiting, he’d understand, and he’d be so much better than any one night stand she could have right then. Plus, if he got a backache from leaning on the half-inch trim of her door, she’d hear about it for weeks.

Shikamaru, being Shikamaru, would already know she was coming back. He’d also know all the right things to do if she came home sobbing. Or if she then latched onto him and refused let go. He’d understand. And that sounded good to her, because right then, that was exactly what she was planning on doing.


End file.
